Some may remember the hit line “Couldn’t get a ticket, it was a sold out show…” from the popular song “Juke Box Hero” on a 1981 album by Foreigner. In celebration of Alumni Weekend, the rock band Foreigner is coming to Choate to give a live concert at 9:00 pm on Saturday, May 17th.
Foreigner was formed in 1976 as a New York rock band. Mick Jones, the lead guitar, along with Ian McDonald, Lou Gramm, Dennis Elliott, Al Greenwood, and Ed Gagliardi, were the original sextet. The popular 80s band has sold more than 50 million albums worldwide.
Their hit songs include “I Want to Know What Love Is,” placing #1 on Billboard charts, “Juke Box Hero,” “Waiting for a Girl Like You,” and “Urgent.”
“I would guess that they’d want to play some of the pieces from their newer albums, and the old classics of course,” says Ms. Sylvia Abbate, Director of Alumni and Donor Relations. In general, alumni and faculty seem most excited about Foreigner’s earlier songs.
“I still love the debut album best: ‘Long Way from Home, Feels like the first time…’” notes Mr. William Berghoff, Dean of Sixth Form Boys. “I’m definitely going!”
Initially, Choate had no plans of inviting a rock band to give a live concert. While planning for Reunion Weekend, an alumna from the concert-hosting class of 1988 contacted the Office of Alumni Relations. The alumna was personally acquainted with one of the members of the Foreigner band and made the band’s appearance at Choate possible.
Understanding that not all alumni will attend the concert, though, a Jazz Combo will simultaneously appear in the Paul Mellon Arts Center Gallery. Mr. Thomas Yankus, Mr. William Cobbett, and several alumni will be playing together.
The school has no interest in forcing attendance, but the number of people who have bought tickets is steadily climbing. “I just let out a little shriek of happiness at my desk…this is going to be so much fun! My mom and sister are coming!” said one 1996 Choate graduate.
Given that Foreigner accumulated its fame back in the 80s and early 90s, the current student body has not shown the same enthusiasm. “I have no idea what Foreigner is; it’s ‘foreign’ to me” explains Shubhro Saha ’11.
Many of the current students of the school have either no conception, or a vague idea, of what Foreigner is. As a band founded in the late 70s, it may take the alumni of the 80s and 90s or the faculty to truly appreciate the concert.
Beer and wine will be served to accompany the rock concert atmosphere. Tickets, 25 dollars each, are sold solely to members of the Choate community who are 21 years or older as Choate has a policy not to allow students at settings with alcoholic beverages.
The concert is intended as a benefit for the school; the band is working for little to no pay. The purpose is to allow Choate to benefit from the concert by maximizing the profits. Besides the contract with the band, Choate is also doing its best to reduce costs by minimizing expenses on technical aspects of the event.
The school is making arrangements with a local production company to assemble a stage, sound system, and lighting in the Winter Johnson Athletic Center, where the concert will be held.
The modest stage that will be constructed is not nearly at the level of a public Foreigner venue. “We are not incurring enormous expenses...actually we’re keeping expenses as low as possible,” says Ms. Abbate. “We wouldn’t do the concert otherwise.”
With the positive feedback from ticket sales—the class of 1988 leading the crowd—it is estimated that as many as 500 to 800 may be attending this concert. Even though the reunion is intended for classes graduating in years that end in “8” or “3,” many alumni from other years are coming back for the concert.
Those who are buying tickets should feel fortunate. Foreigner tickets at other venues can range up to 65 dollars. The tickets for this concert are on the lower end of the spectrum.
Choate will not be publicizing Foreigner’s presence outside of the Choate media. Band members will have limited interaction with members of the school community while they are here.
There will be a “meet-and-greet for donors of a certain level,” notes Ms. Abbate. Otherwise, Foreigner band members will arrive Saturday to practice and adjust sound levels, perform, and leave at 10:30 in the evening, when the concert is predicted to finish.
Choate is not Foreigner’s only appointment in the month of May. When the band arrives, they will have just finished a concert at New Jersey on the 15th, at New York on the 16th, and will be heading to California before coming back to Torrington, Connecticut on the 30th for another performance.
The band is auctioning an autographed electric guitar at the concert, as well as selling their CDs. The school gets a portion of the proceeds, and each person who buys a CD is automatically entered into a drawing for a second autographed guitar.
Mr. Berghoff summarizes the general attitude towards Foreigner’s upcoming concert: “It’s great! It’s has been a long time since the [school] had a ‘headline’ band on campus.”
Foreigner, one of the most prominent rock bands of the 80s and 90s, will perform at Choate on May 17. Contributed photo
